Thomas Billington (5 December 1958 – 5 December 2018), best known by the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or project ...

the Dynamite Kid, was a British

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

. Trained by former wrestler "Dr Death" Ted Betley, he competed in the

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

(WWF),

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the pro ...

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established on October 21, 1972 when Giant Baba split away from the Japanese Wrestling Association and created his own promotion. Many wrestlers had left with Baba ...

(AJPW), and

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority sha ...

(NJPW). With his cousin

Davey Boy Smith David Smith (27 November 1962 – 18 May 2002) was an English professional wrestler. Born in Golborne, Lancashire, Smith is best known for his appearances in the United States with the World Wrestling Federation under the ring names Davey B ...

, he was also known for being one half of the tag team The British Bulldogs. He had notable feuds with Tiger Mask in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

and

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling back ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. Billington is considered by many, including

, to have been one of wrestling's most influential in-ring performers, having increased the level of athleticism involved in the art, bringing together styles from

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

and

Early life

Billington was born in Golborne, Lancashire, England. He had two sisters and a younger brother named Mark. His father Bill and uncle Eric Billington were boxers in their youth and his grandfather Thomas Billington was a bare-knuckle boxer. He was a member of the

Billington family The Billington family is a British family of English nationality which has had a history in England as state employed executioners (around 1884 to 1905) as well as several members who ventured into the world of combat sports and professional wre ...

. One of his ancestors James Billington was also a wrestler. Academic work was not a priority to him, but he was drawn to sports at his

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is re ...

; his adherence to it, particularly wrestling and gymnastics, helped him develop a relatively small but powerful and agile shape. In addition, he had also received training in

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

during his formative years, which helped instill toughness in him before his career.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (1975–1984)

Billington was trained by former wrestler "Dr Death" Ted Betley after a meeting at his fathers work introduced the two. Dynamite Kid made his debut working in 1975 for

Max Crabtree Max Gerald Crabtree (born 1933) is an English retired professional wrestler and promoter, known for working alongside his brother Shirley Crabtree, better known as Big Daddy. Career Crabtree got into wrestling after completing his National ...

. Kid's first match filmed for TV was taped 30 June 1976 in Lincoln (and transmitted 30 October by which time another match against Pete Meredith had been filmed and screened) saw him lose by technical knockout to veteran

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exer ...

"Strongman" Alan Dennison after injuring his throat on the top ring rope. However, Dennison was so impressed by the technical skill of his young opponent that he refused the win and consequently changed his ways and became a blue-eye and a friend of Kid. During his early days, he won the British Lightweight title on 23 April 1977, and the Welterweight title on 25 January 1978. He was also instrumental in starting the career of then-Judo star Chris Adams while still competing in the UK, was scouted and moved to Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1978. Dynamite made a big impact in his matches for

with the increasingly popular Bruce Hart and rookie

. Despite differences between them due to comments Dynamite Kid made about Stu Hart in his autobiography, Bret still regards him as "pound-for-pound, the greatest wrestler who ever lived." Dynamite Kid began taking steroids in 1979, when Big Daddy Ritter, aka the Junkyard Dog, introduced Billington to the anabolic steroid

Dianabol Metandienone, also known as methandienone or methandrostenolone and sold under the brand name Dianabol (D-Bol) among others, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication which is still quite often used because of its affordability and eff ...

. Billington was also introduced to

speed In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quant ...

during his stay in Canada by

Jake Roberts Aurelian Smith Jr. (born May 30, 1955), better known by the ring name Jake "The Snake" Roberts, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs as manager to Lance Archer. He is ...

. After doing big business in Canada, Dynamite was booked on his first tour of Japan, working for International Pro Wrestling from 19–25 July 1979. Stu Hart and Stampede Wrestling switched their business relationship from IPW to

shortly after Dynamite's first tour, and he wrestled for New Japan from 4 January 1980 to 2 August 1984. Perhaps the most memorable matches that came out of Dynamite's run in New Japan were from his now legendary feud against Tiger Mask; Tiger Mask's debut was against Dynamite, in which Tiger Mask shocked the wrestling world by gaining the victory over Dynamite. The two would compete against one another several more times in a feud that is often credited as putting Junior Heavyweight wrestling on the map, as well as setting the standard for future generations. Both the NWA and WWF Junior Heavyweight titles were vacated after Tiger Mask was injured by Dynamite Kid in a tag match on 1 April 1983. Dynamite and Kuniaki Kobayashi competed for the vacant titles, but no winner was decided. On 21 April 1983, Dynamite and Tiger Mask met for the vacant WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship, but no winner was decided after the match ended up as a draw three consecutive times. In 1983, Kid made his debut to the United States working for

Pacific Northwest Wrestling Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW) (also known as Big Time Wrestling and Portland Wrestling) is the common name used to refer to several different professional wrestling companies, both past and present, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. ...

where he feuded with

Curt Hennig Curtis Michael Hennig (March 28, 1958 – February 10, 2003) was an American professional wrestler. He performed under his real name for promotions including the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF; now WWE) ...

. Eventually he won the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight title from Hennig on 7 September. A month later he dropped the title from

Billy Jack Haynes William Albert Haynes III (born July 10, 1953) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Billy Jack Haynes. Professional wrestling career Early career (1982–1984) Haynes started wrestling in 1982 at the ag ...

. Then in November he teamed up with The Assassin and won the Pacific Northwest Tag titles from Curt Hennig and

Buddy Rose Paul Robert Perschmann (November 27, 1952 – April 28, 2009) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Playboy Buddy Rose. He wrestled primarily for the AWA, WWF, and for promoter Don Owen in Pacific Northwest ...

. A month later they dropped the belts to Hennig and Scott McGhee. On 7 February 1984, Billington captured the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship by winning a tournament in New Japan Pro-Wrestling; although it was a WWF Title, it was primarily defended in Japan. He defeated Davey Boy Smith earlier in the tournament and would go on to defeat The Cobra in the finals.

World Wrestling Federation (1984–1988)

Dynamite Kid made his WWF television debut on 29 August 1984, where he and

defeated Iron Mike Sharpe and Troy Alexander in a match eventually shown on 15 September 1984, on the Maple Leaf Garden broadcast. In 1985, Billington would end up teaming with

as the British Bulldogs, while Bret would turn heel and team with Jim Neidhart as The Hart Foundation, and it led to matches between the two teams that usually ended in No-Contests. On 7 April 1986, accompanied by Captain Lou Albano and

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

, the British Bulldogs won the WWF World tag team title from

Greg Valentine Jonathan Anthony Wisniski (born September 20, 1951) is a retired American professional wrestler, better known as Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. He is the son of wrestler Johnny Valentine. Over five decades, Valentine held more than 40 championships ...

and Brutus Beefcake at WrestleMania II. Dynamite Kid would suffer a serious injury in a tag-team match that took place in December 1986 in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of ...

, Canada, against Don Muraco and

Bob Orton, Jr. Robert Keith Orton Jr. (born November 10, 1950), better known by the ring name "Cowboy" Bob Orton, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler. He is the son of professional wrestler Bob Orton Sr., the brother of professional wrestler Bar ...

and several wrestlers including

Roddy Piper Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 31, 2015), better known as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, was a Canadian professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and actor. In professional wrestling, Piper was best known to international audiences for his ...

, Junkyard Dog and

would substitute for him when tag title defenses were made. While recovering in the hospital from back surgery, Billington would later recount that Bret Hart showed up and stated that

Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the ...

had sent him to get Dynamite's tag belt; Billington refused.Tom Billington, ''Pure Dynamite: The Price You Pay for Wrestling Stardom'' Winding Stair Press, 1999 Shortly after checking himself out of the hospital (against doctors' orders), Billington met with McMahon, who requested that the Bulldogs drop the tag titles to the team of

The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff The Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff were a professional wrestling tag team who competed in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1984 to 1987. History After Sheik had lost the WWF World Championship to Hulk Hogan and Volkoff, who had left the ...

; Billington refused, saying that he would only drop the belts to The Hart Foundation. McMahon acquiesced and at a TV taping on 26 January 1987, The British Bulldogs wrestled a match to drop the titles to The Hart Foundation; the match would air on 7 February edition of WWF Superstars of Wrestling. The match itself was an odd sight, as Dynamite could barely walk due to back surgery. Dynamite was knocked out by Jimmy Hart's megaphone early in the match, avoiding him having to wrestle much in the match for story purposes. From that point forward, the Bulldogs would not be a top-tier team anymore, and while they would not become straight jobbers, they would mostly wrestle to double disqualifications, double countouts or time-limit draws against the top teams in the WWF. Billington was known for being a tough guy and for his stiffness as a worker.

Mick Foley Michael Francis Foley (born June 7, 1965) is an American actor, author, retired professional wrestler, and color commentator. He is currently signed to WWE under the company's Legends program, acting as a company ambassador. Foley worked for m ...

reported that, when he and

Les Thornton Les Thornton (9 April 1934 – 1 February 2019) was a British professional wrestler who competed in Great Britain, Japan, European and North American regional promotions throughout the 1970s and 1980s including Joint Promotions, Stampede Wrestl ...

(another British wrestler) wrestled the Bulldogs in a tag-team match early in Foley's career, Billington manhandled him so badly in the ring that he tore a ligament in Foley's jaw with his signature Hook Clothesline, preventing Foley from eating solid food until his recovery.Mick Foley. ''Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks'', p. 82–85. Outside of the ring, WWF-champion

Randy Savage Randall Mario Poffo (November 15, 1952 – May 20, 2011), better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestl ...

once specifically asked for him to watch his back when he went drinking in a hotel bar frequented by NWA wrestlers, including

Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...

. He was also involved in heated backstage fights with Jacques Rougeau, one of which led to Rougeau hitting him with a fistful of quarters as he opened a door holding a cup of coffee, knocking several of his teeth out. Billington claimed the Rougeau incident was not the final straw that drove him to leave the WWF, but rather a dispute with WWF management over the issuance of complimentary plane tickets, over which he resigned from the company on principle and which to his surprise in retrospect, Smith followed suit. The Bulldogs wrestled their last WWF match at the 1988 Survivor Series. (US) Although their team would win the match after team captains The Powers of Pain ( The Barbarian and The Warlord) eliminated the last remaining opponents The Conquistadores, the Bulldogs had earlier been eliminated when Billington had been pinned by Smash of the tag team champions

Demolition Demolition (also known as razing, cartage, and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down of buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a bu ...

Return to Stampede Wrestling, England and Japan (1988–1996)

After leaving the WWF, the Bulldogs returned to Stampede Wrestling to win the International Tag Team Titles. The Bulldogs also competed frequently in All-Japan Pro Wrestling where they were paid $20,000 each by

Giant Baba , best known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter, and professional baseball player. He is best known as a co-founder of All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), a promotion he founded in 1972 along with Mitsuo Momota ...

, along with the liberty of choosing which tours they wanted to participate in. Upon returning to Stampede, the Bulldogs were involved in a feud with Karachi Vice over the Stampede International Tag Team Championship. However, by February 1989, Dynamite became involved in a brutal feud with

Johnny Smith Johnny Henry Smith II (June 25, 1922 – June 11, 2013) was an American cool jazz and mainstream jazz guitarist. He wrote "Walk, Don't Run" in 1954. In 1984, Smith was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. Early life During the Great D ...

after Johnny interfered and attacked the Dynamite Kid, before cutting his hair. In May 1989, the Bulldogs split up in Stampede, but remained a team in AJPW. Over in Stampede, the Bulldogs feuded with each other, with Dynamite forming

The British Bruisers The British Bruisers were a professional wrestling tag team who competed in Stampede Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. The team consisted of The Dynamite Kid and Johnny Smith. The Bruisers were created by Stampede Wrestling as part ...

with Johnny Smith and Davey Boy Smith teaming with a young

Chris Benoit Christopher Michael Benoit (; May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He worked for various pro-wrestling promotions during his 22-year career including most notably the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestlin ...

. In 1990, Davey Boy Smith abruptly withdrew the Bulldogs from AJPW's annual

World's Strongest Tag Determination League __NOTOC__ The , more commonly known in the West as the Real World Tag League, is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by All Japan Pro Wrestling since 1977, usually, run on the first weeks of December. The first tournament was actually ...

by returning to the WWF, and fabricating a story to the All-Japan office that Billington was in a serious car accident and was unable to compete. Back home in the UK, from 1991 onward, he would regularly appear for local promotions All Star Wrestling and Orig Williams' BWF where, due to his WWF success, he was a headline attraction this time around. Since Davey Boy Smith had trademarked the term "The British Bulldog" during the Bulldogs' previous run in WWF, he decided to return to the WWF as The British Bulldog and would send people to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

to warn the promoter every time a flyer was distributed promoting Dynamite Kid as a "British Bulldog". Johnny Smith would end up taking Davey Boy Smith's spot in the World's Strongest Tag Determination League, and the duo (known as

the British Bruisers The British Bruisers were a professional wrestling tag team who competed in Stampede Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. The team consisted of The Dynamite Kid and Johnny Smith. The Bruisers were created by Stampede Wrestling as part ...

) continued to compete in All Japan Pro Wrestling. The duo managed to capture the

All Asia Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team title in Japanese promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). It was created on November 16, 1955, in the Japan Wrestling Association (JWA) when King Kong Czaya and Tiger Joginder Singh defeated JWA fou ...

, but the partnership was short-lived; the years of steroid abuse (including an incident in which he used horse steroids), working a high impact style, and cocaine usage caught up with Billington as he suddenly announced his retirement on 6 December 1991, immediately after the Bruisers defeated Johnny Ace and Sunny Beach at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo. He returned to Japan as a special guest with Lord James Blears on 28 February 1993 and claimed that he was going to send his 17-year-old brother to All Japan's Dojo, but it wasn't realized. He returned again for a tag team match with Johnny Smith on 28 July 1993 and was planning to promote an All-Japan show in his country in 1994, but it wasn't realized either. In January 1994, he returned to England and worked for All Star Wrestling. Before embarking on another All-Japan tour, he visited Dan Spivey and stayed in his home in Florida for a week, while Spivey went on holiday. When Spivey came back, he and Billington took hits of LSD, which resulted in Billington coming close to death twice in one day, but he was revived with adrenaline shots by paramedics both times. His final wrestling match took place on 10 October 1996, at a Michinoku Pro event called ''These Days''. The match was promoted as a "Legends of High-Flying" six-man tag featuring Dynamite paired with Dos Caras and Kuniaki Kobayashi against the

Great Sasuke , born July 18, 1969), is a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and politician, currently wrestling for Michinoku Pro Wrestling (MPW) under the ring name . Aside from professional wrestling, he is also a former Iwate Prefectural Assembly ...

, Mil Máscaras, and Tiger Mask. Dynamite's body had degenerated to the point where he was "practically skin and bones", as the bottom portion of his tights were very loose. In the end, Dynamite delivered his trademark tombstone piledriver on Great Sasuke, leading Dos Caras to powerbomb Sasuke for the pin. While at the airport to return home on the next day, Dynamite had a second

seizure An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with lo ...

(the first one was in 1987) and was sent to the hospital immediately.

Personal life

In 1991, he was divorced from his first wife Michelle Smadu (the sister of

's then-wife

Julie Julie may refer to: * Julie (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the name Film and television * ''Julie'' (1956 film), an American film noir starring Doris Day * ''Julie'' (1975 film), a Hindi film by K. S. Sethumadhav ...

), with whom Billington had one son and two daughters (Marek, Bronwyne and Amaris). Following the end of his marriage to Michelle, he moved from Canada back home to Golborne with his parents. There he married for a second time to a woman named Dot; with her he had three stepsons; John, Steven and Mark. Before his death Billington had two granddaughters, Miami and Taya. He is now survived by two more grandchildren, Madix and Harlow. Billington was a close friend of

Wayne Hart Wayne Maris Hart (September 10, 1889 – April 1970) was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Clemson University for one season in 1916, compiling a record of 3–6. Har ...

. When Billington was living in Calgary, they co-owned an apartment together where they lived with their respective girlfriends.

Altercations with other wrestlers

Billington had several violent interactions with fellow wrestlers. One such event was with Bruce Hart, in which Billington broke Hart's jaw. Another was while in WWF, where wrestler Jacques Rougeau Jr. felt that Billington had bullied him and punched Billington in the face with a fist holding rolled up quarters, knocking out Billington's front teeth.

Health problems

In 1997, after having a great deal of complications he was experiencing with walking due to the large number of back and leg injuries he suffered during his career, Billington lost the use of his left leg. Using a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability. These can include spinal cord injuries ( paraplegia, hemiplegia, and quadriplegia), ce ...

for mobility, he was cared for by his second wife, Dot. Billington was told he would never be able to walk again.

Harley Race Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer. Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federati ...

, the inventor of the diving headbutt (a move

also used frequently), stated prior to his passing that he regretted ever inventing the move due to its ostensible causation of spinal problems, concussions, and that it may have contributed to Billington's disability. In addition to his paralysis, Billington also suffered from heart problems.Curse of Stampede Wrestling?
20 May 2007, Retrieved 31 July 2012. In November 2013, Billington reportedly suffered a stroke. In 2015, he was named in a lawsuit filed by WWE after the organization received a letter from him indicating that he intended to sue them for concussion-based injuries sustained during his affiliation with WWE. He was represented by attorney Konstantine Kyros, who is involved in several other lawsuits involving former WWE wrestlers. Billington's lawsuit was dismissed by US District Judge

Vanessa Lynne Bryant Vanessa Lynne Bryant (born January 27, 1954) is a Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Early life Bryant was born in Queens, New York, and graduated from Howard University wit ...

in September 2018.

Death

Billington died on 5 December 2018, his 60th birthday. The exact cause of death remains unconfirmed, but the BBC report of his death placed it in the context of the above-mentioned health issues.

Legacy

Billington's British training, combined with an aerial arsenal honed during numerous tours in Japan, influenced a generation of later wrestling stars, especially those normally associated with Stu Hart's "Dungeon". A follower was

, who idolized Billington while growing up and adopted a similar moveset that included the swandive headbutt and the Snap suplex. In February 2013, Highspots.com released a documentary named '' Dynamite Kid: A Matter of Pride'' on the Dynamite Kid. In October 2014, Billington was presented with a lifetime achievement award at

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east o ...

Leisure Centre by Superstars of Wrestling UK. Billington is featured in the 2016 documentary ''

Nine Legends ''Nine Legends'' is a professional wrestling documentary released online via an official stream in January 2016. The film features interviews with seven professional wrestlers, boxer and occasional wrestling personality Mike Tyson and former amate ...

''. The playable character in the Mat Mania/Mania Challenge/Exciting Hour arcade games of the mid 1980s named "Dynamite Tommy" frequently is presumed to be modeled after Billington. In fact, the artwork for the game features the character wearing a championship belt which is almost exactly like the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship which Billington held. Billington's nephews Thomas and Mark have become professional wrestlers, having been trained by Marty Jones and have formed a tag team, The Billington Bulldogs. On 16 September 2021, Vice TV aired (as part of their series '' Dark Side of the Ring'') a retrospective of Billington's life, both in and out of the ring. Included in that program are interviews with Dynamite's widow, daughters, and wrestlers Dan Spivey and WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley.

Championships and accomplishments

( 1 time) – with

** NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) **World's Strongest Tag Determination League Fighting Spirit Award (1984, 1985) – with

**World's Strongest Tag Determination League Skills Award (1989) – with Davey Boy Smith **World's Strongest Tag Determination League Fair Play Award (1990, 1991) – with Johnny Smith * Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling **AGPW International Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame **Class of 2001 * Joint Promotions ** British Welterweight Championship ( 1 time) ** British Lightweight Championship ( 1 time) **European Welterweight Championship (1 time) *

** WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) **Greatest Gaijin Junior Section (2002) *

** NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with The Assassin *''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publi ...

'' **Ranked # 5 of the 100 best tag teams of the " PWI Years" with

in 2003. **Ranked #41 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the " PWI Years" in 2003 *

** Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship ( 4 times, inaugural) ** Stampede International Tag Team Championship ( 6 times) – with Sekigawa (1),

Loch Ness Monster The Loch Ness Monster ( gd, Uilebheist Loch Nis), affectionately known as Nessie, is a creature in Scottish folklore that is said to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is often described as large, long-necked, and with one or ...

(1), Kasavudo (1), Duke Myers (1),

(2) ** Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) **

Stampede World Mid-Heavyweight Championship The Stampede World Mid-Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling title, one of the lesser known secondary titles created for Stampede Wrestling in 1959, and was the focal point of the 1982-83 feud between the Dynamite Kid and the Great ...

( 4 times) ** Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 1995) *'' Tokyo Sports'' **

Lifetime Achievement Award Lifetime achievement awards are awarded by various organizations, to recognize contributions over the whole of a career, rather than or in addition to single contributions. Such awards, and organizations presenting them, include: A * A.C. ...

(1991) *

** WWF Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) – with Davey Boy Smith *''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four W ...

'' **

Best Flying Wrestler This is a list of both active and inactive ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll between ...

(1984) ** Best Technical Wrestler (1984) - tied with Masa Saito ** Best Wrestling Maneuver (1984) Power clean dropkick ** Hardest Worker (1983) ** Match of the Year (1982) vs. Tiger Mask on 5 August,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

** Most Underrated (1983) ** Most Impressive Wrestler (1983-1985) ** Tag Team of The Year (1985) - with Davey Boy Smith ** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame ( Class of 1996)

''Luchas de Apuestas'' record

Notes

References

External links

*
dynamitekid.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dynamite Kid 1958 births 2018 deaths 20th-century professional wrestlers All Asia Tag Team Champions Billington family English male professional wrestlers Expatriate professional wrestlers in Japan Hart family members NWA International Junior Heavyweight Champions People from Golborne People with paraplegia Stampede Wrestling alumni Stampede Wrestling British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Champions Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Champions Stampede Wrestling North American Heavyweight Champions Stampede Wrestling World Mid-Heavyweight Champions Wheelchair users